BARSTOOL SPORTS EYES BOOZE, BOXING
• Barstool Sports has a plan for surviving the digital media doldrums: boxing and booze.
The sports and lifestyle website geared t oward young men has raised an additional US$ 15 million from majority owner Chernin Group, an investment firm led by former News Corp. executive Peter Chernin. Barstool plans to use the funding to create new properties — like branded alcohol or even its own bar — and expand Rough N Rowdy, an amateur- boxing promoter it recently acquired, says founder Dave Portnoy.
Barstool, which was been the subject of controversy for hosting content considered sexist, also plans to roughly double its staff to 160 by hiring more writers, video producers and podcast hosts. The New York-based startup plans to start selling subscriptions to fans who want exclusive content tied to its podcasts or online Q& As with talent and personalities, according to chief executive officer Erika Nardini.
The latest funding “gives us the freedom to follow our instincts,” Portnoy said.
Barstool Sports is seeking new lines of business to survive a difficult climate for digital media companies. Google and Facebook are vacuuming up most of the online advertising dollars, and Facebook just announced plans to limit publishers’ content on its popular News Feed.
The latest funding round values Barstool Sports at about US$ 100 million, according to a person familiar with the matter. That’s less than digital media giants like BuzzFeed, which was said to be worth US$1.7 billion after a funding round in 2016, or Vice Media, valued at about US$5.7 billion in June.
Barstool Sports is profitable, Nardini said, without disclosing financial figures. Portnoy said he wants the company to be valued at US$ 250 million in the next three to five years.
The Chernin Group, which bought its majority stake in January 2016, has invested about US$ 25 million in the website so far, Nardini said. “The company has far exceeded our plans and all our models,” said Mike Kerns, president of digital at the Chernin Group. “There are a lot more areas we need to invest in.”
Kerns said Barstool Sports will probably enter new lines of business through acquisitions. In December, the company sold 34,000 payper- view packages for as much as US$ 15.99 each for an amateur boxing match in West Virginia. Barstool wants to host boxing matches in “every state we can get licensed,” Portnoy said.